Incarcerated rapper C-Murder has lost his latest appeal to overturn his 2009 murder conviction. The hip-hop star, real name Corey Miller, was handed a life sentence in 2003 after he was found guilty of the 2002 killing of 16-year-old Steve Thomas in a nightclub in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The conviction for second degree murder was overturned in 2006 and a second trial got underway in 2009 – only for Miller to be ordered once again to spend the rest of his life behind bars.

Miller, the younger brother of rap mogul Master P, maintains his innocence and launched an appeal earlier this year, claiming he didn’t receive a fair trial because jurors were allowed to hear unsubstantiated testimony about witnesses allegedly being threatened by the embattled star.

But a three-judge panel at Louisiana’s 5th Circuit Court of Appeal rejected the motion on Wednesday and chose to uphold the ruling against Miller and his lengthy sentence.